French en Famille

Victorian Parents and Students Tour is 14 days and 13 nights and starts today Monday 28 June in Paris.

Monday 28 June – Arrive at our 3 star Hotel on the Left Bank in Paris, a short walk from street markets, shops, cafes and the Eiffel Tower. Meet in the foyer at 5pm to go to the local market right in our street, where we will shop in French for supplies to take for a picnic under the Eiffel tower. (D)

Tuesday 29 June –
Paris, the city of bridges, wide boulevards and stunning gilt architecture is absolutely made for walking. It is relatively flat with wide spectacular vistas everywhere and hidden corners that you never knew existed.
Today we visit the spot where Paris began; the beautiful Islands of the Seine River and home to Notre Dame Cathedral and La Conciergerie. This morning after breakfast we will do an orientation walking tour of Paris's Rive Droite or right bank and its wonderful sights, smells and sounds and then sit in a quiet niche near the River Seine for lunch together in what was once an old boulangerie. The walking tour will be conducted in some very easy French to get you into the swing of things. And for the parents – your students or guide can translate for you. Back to the hotel via some legendary Parisian landmarks.
Dinner tonight will be in a bistro with the group where students can practice ordering in French. (B/L/D)

Wed 30 June – After a good breakfast we are out bike riding in the spectacular Palace of Versailles.
We will spend a short time shopping for food at the local market and then picnicking on the Grand Canal as well as riding bikes around the vast gardens, forest and grounds of the Palace and doing a guided tour of the chateau, the Hall of Mirrors, Marie Antoinette's bedroom, les Trianons and the magnificent fountains and statuary. The tour can be in French or English and your bike guide will also speak both languages.
Dinner is optional tonight, you may want to buy your own picnic in the market outside your hotel door or dine in a local café with others and practice your French. (B)

Thursday 1st July –
This morning we will visit a local primary school in Paris to give our students a chance to talk to the pupils as well as present to them a little of their life in Australia and hand out some presents. Australians are hugely popular with the French and it is their "dream" to come to Australia one day. The children adore being visited by "celebrity Australians".

After lunch we have a special treat: we shall "segué" through Paris. This is a bike tour with a difference. We stand on our transports and sway to make them move. Imagine cruising effortlessly through the beautiful parks and bike tracks of Paris while receiving great informative historical and current-day information, heaps of unique and fascinating stories, fantastic photo opportunities and lots of French tips from your guide. This is a self-balancing, personal transportation device that's designed to operate in any pedestrian environment. It's new, it's cool and it is just so much fun – everyone will take photos of you!
Dinner tonight in a local restaurant with the group (B/D)

Friday 2nd July –

Parents and Students from states other than Victoria will join us tonight. Their tour starts July 2nd in Paris and is 12 days. (For Parents and Students from other Australian states your tour starts today when you will arrive on Friday the 2nd July and settle in to our left bank hotel and join our Victorian students for dinner tonight when we all meet in the foyer at 5.30 pm.)
For Victorian students, after breakfast before the others arrive, we will be doing a tour spoken in French of the spectacular palace of Sorbonne University built by Cardinal Richelieu in the 17th century. This institution was the first university in Paris in the 12th century and it is why this area is called The Latin Quarter.
You will be given notes to assist you with translation but the French is quite simple and easy.
This afternoon after a quick lunch we will visit the scenic quartier of Montmartre home of Amelie and many other film sets as well as the Moulin Rouge, Sacre Coeur and many wonderful cafés for great shopping as well as views over the cityscape of Paris.
Tonight we meet our new group and all dine together in one of the oldest Belle époque restaurants in Paris whose décor has not changed since the 1890's. This restaurant has been used in many films and is quintessentially Parisian. (B/D)

Saturday 3rd July – Today we shall all take a memorable barge ride up the Seine and onto the Canal Saint Martin which was built on the orders of Napoleon Bonaparte. We shall sail past the Musée D'Orsay and the Louvre and under Paris's most famous bridges then up through a barge tunnel and between locks, old-fashioned pedestrian bridges past cafés and Paris's parks. The tour is conducted in French and English. We will have a quick lunch at the Parc de la Villette in the north Eastern corner of Paris and then the afternoon we will visit an exquisite and chic museum that is one of our favourites. You are then free to shop, explore or to do some other museum visits if you want to. We will provide a list of museums and recommendations for you. Dinner tonight is optional for the parents as the students will be taken out to see a French film and have a snack (B/film)

Sunday 4th July – Our bus will transfer us this morning to Gare de Lyon where we take the scenic TGV (very fast train) down to Avignon in Provence.
From here we will transfer to the tiny riverside village of Fontaine de Vaucluse and our lovely hotel (located in a beautiful renovated mill house) where will meet the friendly French staff who have become our personal friends over the years, and settle in.

Dinner will be at a local restaurant in the village with the group. (B/D)

Monday 5th July – Today is a treat for the eyes as we visit some of the renowned perched hill villages made famous by Peter Mayle in his book A Year in Provence.

We visit the quaint medieval village of Gordes and take a tour conducted in French of the ancient 12th century Cistercian Abbaye de Senanque. (Adults can remain and shop/explore in Gordes if they'd prefer)

We then go on to the ochre-toned village of Rousillon where every corner holds a scenic delight and the students will have to follow French clues to locate various sites and take photos and document them whilst the parents wander the scenic towns little alleyways and shops. Then on to Lacoste, an artists' village where the famous designer Pierre Cardin has restored the ancient castle of the Marquis de Sade.

Aperitifs this evening at our hotel at Le Poete and time to speak, learn or practise some French with some of our local friends, before going out to dinner as a group in the village of Fontaine de Vaucluse. (B/aperitif/ D)

Tuesday 6th July – This morning we visit the dramatic cliff top township of Les Baux, seat of the bloodthirsty medieval Counts of Baux and now owned by the Grimaldi family of Monaco. We will have a guided tour in French before going on to visit the chic, picturesque town of St Remy where you will love the history, the shopping and the sights.

This afternoon we visit another Roman Unesco World Heritage site – this time the fascinating town of Arles where the Romans built an arena and baths, where the medieval inhabitants built the Romanesque masterpiece of St Trophime, and where Van Gogh went to paint some of his most famous works.
Group dinner tonight in the village and a chance to practice your French on the waiting staff at our friendly riverside restaurant. (B/D)

Wednesday 7th July – Today we will enjoy a French Cooking class in a nearby local village. The class will be conducted in easy French by our French chef and any translations can be done both by the students for their parents and by Kate if necessary (to avoid anyone setting fire to themselves through a misunderstanding!) Lunch here is included.
This afternoon we will provide another French activity for the students which is yet to be organised.
Free night to explore village and dine at restaurant of your choice and time to work on journals and photo presentation (B/L)

Thursday 8th July – This morning we visit the food market at the gorgeous village of Isle sur la Sorgue. This is an opportunity to shop, sit in a riverside café or people watch from a café in the square. Interwoven with streams and bridges Isle sur La Sorgue is a delightful backdrop to the colorful market.
We will be conducting a adult/student competition tonight back at our hotel to see who can present the best Provencal al-fresco dinner course and so you will all have to purchase food at the market place this morning to work with this evening in your presentation. Students will be given a game where they must visit 5 different stalls, buy food and also make inquiries (rehearsed beforehand) and document their responses under a time constraint and report back to the group. After lunch the students will spend the afternoon with a French teacher at the hotel in the conference room or outside in the garden working on their journals and presentations whilst Kate takes the parents to the scenic Chateauneuf-du-Pape wine region for a wine-tasting.
This is the famous region where the Avignon popes summered to escape the heat of Avignon in the 14th century. It is home to the famous Côtes du Rhone reds such as Gigondas and Chateauneuf-du-Pape itself. We'll visit the ancient Pope's Summer chateau high on the hill that was bombed out by the Germans in reprisals during WW2, explore the village and visit our favourite winery. (B/D)

Friday 9th July – This morning is the weekly market in Lourmarin; a chic Provencal town less well known and touristed with great shops and cafés. You will love the market, full of fresh produce and classy, alluring souvenir shopping.
After lunch in the afternoon we will visit the historic Roman town of Orange and the wonderful Roman Theatre, one of the most intact ruins of its type in the world, which is still used for concerts and performances to this day. This is one of our favourite historic visits as this UNESCO world heritage site is absolutely fascinating. Tour conducted in French and English.

This evening the students will perform a short presentation each showing what they have experienced and learned this week shown through their photos and a commentary. There will be awards given out to commend their progress and there will be absolutely no pressure to conform to any standard. It is all about fun and having a go.
Picnic dinner at Le Poete and presentation of the food courses each team has prepared from the morning's market produce purchases. This is always a fun activity and gives the students an opportunity to explain their choices and share their experiences in buying and preparing the food. (B/D)

Saturday 10th July –

This morning we depart Fontaine de Vaucluse for a visit to the famous medieval walled town of Avignon. See the imposing Papal palace that dominates the medieval square and wander the cobbled streets past carousels, cafés and fine shops. The students will do an Amazing Race orienteering walk and spot landmarks in a competition of cryptic clues while Kate takes the parents on a short walking tour of the historic town centre. Then we bus to Avignon station and take the TGV back to Paris. Arriving late afternoon we will check into our boutique three star hotel in central Paris before our Farewell Dinner where we say goodbye to the Victorian Parents and Students at a restaurant not far from our hotel (B/D)

Sunday 11th July – Our tour ends after breakfast for the Victorians who will be free to visit the Louvre or other sites in Paris, continue your onward journey or return to Australia. (B)

For the other Parents and Students we have a special treat: we shall "segué" through Paris. This is a bike tour with a difference. We stand on our transports and sway to make them move and turn. Imagine cruising effortlessly through the beautiful parks and bike tracks of Paris while receiving great informative historical and current-day information, heaps of unique and fascinating stories, fantastic photo opportunities and French terms from your guide. This is a self-balancing, personal transportation device that's designed to operate in any pedestrian environment. It's new, it's cool and so much fun – everyone will take photos of you!
Dinner tonight will be a picnic under the Eiffel tower with some French friends who will join us to talk to the students. (B/D)

Monday 12th July – After a good breakfast we are all out bike riding in the spectacular Palace of Versailles. We will spend a short time shopping for food at the local market and then picnicking on the Grand Canal as well as riding bikes around the vast gardens, forest and grounds of the Palace and doing a guided tour of the chateau: the Hall of Mirrors, Marie Antoinette's bedroom, les Trianons and the magnificent fountains and statuary. The tour can be in French or English and your bike guide will give you lots of French tips.
Farewell dinner tonight with the group in a local bistro. (B/L/D)

Tuesday 13th July – Our tour ends after breakfast for folk from states other than Victoria and you will be free to visit the Louvre or other sites in Paris, continue your onward journey - as most will have further time on holidays - or you can return to Australia. (B)

TOUR INCLUSIONS:

 

• Accommodation throughout the tour in 3 star hotels, including breakfast each day
• All meals as per the above itinerary
• Cooking Class
• All entries, tours & excursions, including film in Paris
• Barge ride in Paris
• All transport included as per the itinerary including daily excursions in air conditioned bus with private driver
• Second class train travel Paris – Avignon – Paris
• The full time services of your tour manager Kate Stedman, including French language, history  and culture
• Structured sessions with our local French contacts and teachers